Deraliye

We came with a big group and with kids, hungry and tired and with 1000 of extra requests. And we were blown away by the level of service and food at this place. Everything was beyond excellent. Emrah took amazing care of us and made sure non of our thousand wishes was not fulfilled. To top everything of, he surprised us with an extra compliment for our birthday girl. We will definitely come back!

I had the pleasure of dining at Deraliye a wonderful Turkish Ottoman restaurant, and I must say it was an exceptional experience from start to finish. The ambiance is warm and inviting, with beautiful decor . The staff is incredibly friendly and attentive, making sure every detail is perfect. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to enjoy delicious Turkish cuisine in a beautiful setting.

I found this restaurant on the Michelin Guide prior to our trip to Istanbul. My husband and I had the Sultan tasting menu, which certainly achieved the Michelin Guide standard. Each course was outstanding. The service was excellent. The restaurant was beautiful and comfortable. Perfect meal.

We had appetizers and they were very good, it’s located in a small street in the old town, loved the interior but sitting in the street was not a 100% comfortable, the cars literally drive next to you and it was full of cars most of the time. Next time will probably sit inside. Service was ok but we had to repeat ourselves a couple of times. The mezze were good but we definitely had exceptional ones in other places. Would try the fish they made for our neighbors, they said it was very good.

This was our second time dinning at this restaurant, we had such a great experience the first time we came a year ago and we decided to try it again. The ambiance at Deraliye is stunning, traditional with good traces of historic decor. The staff is friendly and helpful, speaking very good English during the ordering process and while explaining each individual dish. We ordered The Menu of Sultan a 7 course meal, the menu and staff suggests that these are traditional dishes eaten by King Yavuz Sultan Selim, if the recipe survived almost 500 years, it must be good! Truth is that we enjoyed about 80% of the courses, a lot of the cold Mezzes might be just a bit grainy for a western palate. On the hot side, Sailor Roll Patty could have skipped the honey, the roll itself was really good though. All of the main courses were on point, but you have to have deep sugar craves to appreciate the dessert. With exception of the little things I mentioned, it was a great experience and I plan to go back again soon.

This is a “special occasion” restaurant and meal. And it’s considered expensive, even by American/European standards. The food was pretty good, the service was great, but I would not say that it was worth a $170 bill for two (that’s why I’m taking off 2 stars) It was a special occasion for us, and we enjoyed the night thoroughly, but for any other day of the year, you can find equally delicious meals for less than a half the cost in Istanbul.

Osman and everyone was amazing. We took the cooking class and had an amazing time. We met the owner and everyone that came by was so pleasant. They said it’s like a family and you can feel that. Not only did we have an amazing time learning to prepare and cook authentic Turkish food it was so delicious. It was a special treat for our 10 year wedding anniversary. Something we will never forget. We would highly recommend coming even if you don’t make your own meal. ;)

We went to Deraliye because it came highly recommended by a guide. It was definitely the most comfortable restaurant we experienced in Istanbul with cloth napkins and white tablecloths but our being impressed stopped there. There is an expression in marketing that you don’t sell the steak but you sell the sizzle. There was lots of sizzle including entrees that arrived under silver domes dramatically removed to reveal simply mediocre food at a high price. We ate the night before at a simple and delicious mom-and-pop place for 1/4 of the price. With all the amazingly tasty restaurants in back alleys and hidden corners Istanbul has to offer, we realized fancier does not mean better.